On the officials' ship, Shi Jin put down his phone and looked at Number Two sitting beside him, saying, "They're really digging into my background now, and suspect that there's a conspiracy behind why I was sent to attend the meeting on behalf of Annihilation. It's working well."

Number Two furrowed his brow and asked, "Is it okay? Will this not implicate Ruihang?"

Shi Jin reassured, "It's okay. After the meeting, they won't have time to care about me. Right now, Ruihang is not the focus. My relationship with my fourth brother is the focus. They wouldn't want to see the alliance between me and the official troops."

Alliance.

Number Two was amused by his choice of words and said, "You always have a lot of ideas... Rest early, tomorrow won't be as easy."

Shi Jin nodded, smiled at him, and said, "I know. Thank you. You should rest early too." After seeing him out, he glanced at Lian Jun's progress bar and a hint of fatigue appeared on his face.

......

After a dreamless night, the next day, Shi Jin got up early, put on his battle suit - a vintage three-piece plaid suit, and donned the gold-rimmed glasses given to him by Fei Yujing. He tidied up his accessories and brought Number Two and the others to the deck. He sat down next to Zhang Zhuoyuan, assuming the posture of helping him chair the meeting.

Zhang Zhuoyuan's mouth twitched as he looked at the chair Shi Jin was sitting on. He pressed on his heart, which was overstimulated, and asked, "Why are you sitting down?" And where did you get that chair from?

Shi Jin looked up at him strangely and asked, "Didn't Lian Jun also sit down to help you chair the meeting last year? Can't I sit down?"

"Lian Jun was sitting in a wheelchair!" Zhang Zhuoyuan gritted his teeth.

Shi Jin frowned and said, "So you want me to sit in a wheelchair too? It's not impossible, but I didn't bring one..."

"I want you to stand up! Stand up!" Zhang Zhuoyuan's voice couldn't help but raise.

Number Two immediately stepped forward with a smile and said, "Director Zhang, your voice seems to be too loud. People around us are looking over."

It was now the time for the various organizations' ships to help each other build gangways, and there were indeed many people around. Zhang Zhuoyuan heard Number Two's warning and was startled. He suppressed his anger and politely said, "Mr. Shi, everyone is standing. Is it not a bit inappropriate for you to be sitting alone?"

"It does seem that way." Shi Jin stood up very agreeably, gesturing for Number Two to move the chair away, and stood obediently by Zhang Zhuoyuan's side.

Zhang Zhuoyuan breathed a sigh of relief and felt that although Shi Jin was young and inexperienced, he was not beyond redemption and could still communicate. "Fourth Brother! Why are you standing outside the captain's cabin? Come down and stand with me!"

Shi Jin suddenly waved his hand and warmly greeted Xiang Aoting, who was standing outside the cabin.

With a clatter, countless hot gazes fell on Shi Jin and Xiang Aoting, washing back and forth.

Zhang Zhuoyuan's heart shrank, feeling like he was suffocating - he missed the calm and reliable Lian Jun very much!

Liu Zhenjun, standing next to Xiang Aoting, glanced around the several large organization's ships without leaving a trace, and said, "Colonel Xiang, your brother is really lively."

Xiang Aoting looked helpless and said, "That's just his personality... Admiral, excuse me." After speaking, he left the captain's cabin and came to the deck, standing next to Shi Jin.

Shi Jin was extremely happy and immediately started chatting with him. What a happy picture of brothers chatting!

"Mr. Shi, could you please tone it down a bit?" Zhang Zhuoyuan struggled to speak as he was dying.

Shi Jin glanced at him and reluctantly took off his diamond watch, saying, "Is this better?" He then lifted his hand and put the watch on Xiang Aoting's wrist.

Zhang Zhuoyuan: "..." That's not what I meant by low-key, you jerk!

Ah, my heart is so tired, I want to jump into the sea.

......

Half an hour later, the gangway was set up and the meeting was about to begin. The leaders of various organizations boarded the ship one after another, and Liu Zhenjun also walked down from the captain's room and stood next to Zhang Zhuoyuan.

Shi Jin was still standing with Xiang Aoting, unabashedly scanning the leaders of various organizations as if he were a young master out to see the world and have some fun. He occasionally whispered to Xiang Aoting.

As Lu Shan boarded the ship, Shi Jin looked at her very obviously without blinking. Lu Shan's mouth twitched, showing her disdain and disgust towards him. She gave him a "friendly" look and then turned her head to ignore him. Other leaders of the organization saw his attitude and their suspicions grew even stronger.

"It seems that the deputy leader of Annihilation still has a grudge against you for kidnapping him," Yuan Peng suddenly spoke, walking beside Lu Shan at some point, his tone sounding a bit strange.

Lu Shan glanced at him and warned, "Don't think that just because Qi Yun spoke a few good words for you, you can turn the world upside down. Behave yourself and remember that I brought you into the alliance. Don't mess with me."

Yuan Peng's eyes darkened, but he had a smile on his face as he said, "I was just joking."

Meng Qing and Qi Yun, the last to board the ship, caught a glimpse of Lu Shan and Yuan Peng talking. One furrowed their brow while the other raised an eyebrow, then they both instinctively averted their gaze and went to greet Zhang Zhuoyuan who had just arrived in time.

Zhang Zhuoyuan politely returned the greeting, but his eyes kept darting back and forth between Meng Qing and Qi Yun, leaving them unsure if he was simply bold or intentionally rude.

"I wonder how Mr. Lian Jun is doing?" Qi Yun, the elegant-looking leader in his early forties, took the initiative to start a conversation with a mild and casual attitude, as if it were just a normal greeting.

Shi Jin smiled and replied, "He's doing alright, just a bit thinner. Before I left, he refused to get out of bed, and these past few days while I've been away, he's probably been picky with his food again. It's really worrying."

Mr. Lian Jun? Refusing to get out of bed? Being picky with food? Meng Qing and Qi Yun couldn't help but wonder. Qi Yun's smile faded as he scrutinized Shi Jin's expression, unable to discern whether he was joking or answering the question seriously.

"Mr. Shi seems to have a good relationship with Colonel Xiang. Are they old acquaintances?" Meng Qing, with a rugged appearance softened by age, casually interjected, not appearing too intimidating at first glance.

Shi Jin looked at him without hesitation, and with great pride, patted Xiang Aoting's shoulder, saying, "We're not just old acquaintances, Colonel Xiang is my older brother."

Xiang Aoting freely let Shi Jin pat him, then nodded towards Meng Qing and Qi Yun and said, "My younger brother doesn't have much experience with these meetings, so I hope you two seniors can take care of him." In other words, don't bully my little brother just because he's new to this.

His real brother?!

Meng Qing and Qi Yun looked back and forth at Shi Jin and Xiang Aoting's serious expressions, feeling like a bolt of lightning had struck them, instantly sparking countless thoughts. Wasn't Shi Jin the young master of Ruihang? Didn't he only have one older brother, Shi Weichong? How could Xiang Aoting be his real brother? Was what Shi Jin said true or false?

If it was true, did Lian Jun know about Shi Jin's relationship with Xiang Aoting? Why did Xiang Aoting come to this conference this year? Did Lian Jun send Shi Jin to attend the conference because of Xiang Aoting? Or was Xiang Aoting's appearance related to Shi Jin's attendance?

If it was false, why did Shi Jin lie? Or maybe Lu Shan got it wrong and this Shi Jin wasn't the young master of Ruihang after all? As they locked eyes with Shi Jin, he pretended not to notice their internal turmoil and smiled back, responding with a counter-greeting, "By the way, I noticed that Mr. Meng and Mr. Qi seem to have a good relationship. Are you two old acquaintances as well?"

Meng Qing and Qi Yun were taken aback and couldn't help but wonder - what did Shi Jin mean by this? Was he just making small talk, or did he realize something and come over to play dumb and test them? Was Shi Jin really that naive, or was he hiding something behind his innocent facade, like a wolf in sheep's clothing?

The more they thought about it, the more they felt that the expressions, behaviors, and language of Shi Jin conveyed deeper meanings. Finally, Qi Yun was the first to come back to his senses and smiled as he replied, "No wonder you two are such good brothers. Mr. Meng and I see each other every year at the conference, so we're old acquaintances. The conference is about to start, Mr. Shi, please excuse us."

With that, he nodded to Shi Jin, Xiang Aoting, Zhang Zhuoyuan, and others before turning and walking towards the conference room.

Meng Qing collected his thoughts and took a step back to bid farewell. His gaze swept over Xiang Aoting and Shi Jin before he left.

Shi Jin watched them leave and chuckled mysteriously.

"What's wrong?" Xiang Aoting asked, frowning. He didn't like the way those people were looking at Shi Jin. "I just find it amusing how they scare themselves like that. Thanks for coming, Fourth Brother. You saved me a lot of trouble," replied Shi Jin, adjusting his suit and turning to greet Zhang Zhuoyuan warmly. "Director, the meeting is about to start. Shall we go in?"

Zhang Zhuoyuan glanced at him, his eyes devoid of any spark. He couldn't believe how loose-lipped Shi Jin was about his relationship with Xiang Aoting. He dreaded to think what kind of twisted version of events Shi Jin would present at the upcoming annual review. This year's meeting was doomed.